Hillfoot bring you an update on the May 2017 surcharges for carbon and alloy steels.

Surcharges for carbon and alloy steel grades have fallen slightly for May 2017 due to a small decline in demand for raw materials.

The scrap surcharge dropped from £148 per tonne in April to £133 per tonne, although it remains significantly higher than last year’s levels (it was £103 in May 2016).

Market conditions suggest that the drop is unlikely to be the beginning of a downward trend and that surcharges will remain high over the coming months.

Simon Taylor, Purchasing Manager for Hillfoot, explained: “Surcharges moved down slightly into May as demand lowered through the Easter period and mills used stocks before rebuying raw materials.

“The underlying demand and forecasts all remain strong and therefore most predictions are for surcharges to stay at these levels into the summer and increase again through Q3 as mills return from their annual shutdowns.”

A number of alloy surcharges have dropped for May, including Nickel and Chrome, but both Molybdenum and Vanadium rose sharply.

Click here to find out how the changes have affected the surcharge for specific steel grades, or contact the Hillfoot team for advice on your steel requirements.